At the invitation of CRC Spokesperson Prof. Dr. Markus Tepe, Prof. Raanan Sulitzeanu-Kenan from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem visited Bremen. On 20 May 2026 he gave a lecture entitled "The Curse of Highly Effective Social Policies: Empirical Implications of a Theoretical Model". The event was held in a hybrid format, enabling colleagues from other universities to participate as well.
Abstract:
How can we explain cases in which effective social policies become neglected by policymakers and citizens alike? Highly effective policies reduce the visibility of the social problems they address (e.g., poverty, poor health, inequality), thereby creating the illusion that the problem has been solved. As a result, beneficiaries may become less politically active, as the urgency that once motivated mobilization declines, and voters may similarly shift their attention toward other issues. These dynamics, in turn, create opportunities for opponents (e.g., austerity advocates, science skeptics) to argue that the policy is no longer necessary or has become too costly. Political support for a social policy may therefore erode because it succeeded, not because it failed. This study investigates this curse of highly effective social policies by developing a theoretical model that captures these self-undermining dynamics and generates several unintuitive predictions about the relationship between a policy’s effectiveness and the temporal evolution of public support and funding.
Raanan Sulitzeanu-Kenan is a Professor of Public Policy at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. He earned his DPhil in Political Science from Oxford University. His research focuses on behavioral public administration, political behavior, and empirical legal studies, with a prolific publication record exploring topics such as public sector honesty, proportionality in policy, and the reputational dynamics of administrative agencies. He served as the Head of the Federmann School of Public Policy (2017-21), and as Vice-Dean of Teaching at the Faculty of Social Sciences (2023-26) at the Hebrew University.
Contact:
Prof. Dr. Markus Tepe
CRC 1342: Global Dynamics of Social Policy
Mary-Somerville-Straße 5
28359 Bremen
Phone: +49 421 218-58520
E-Mail: markus.tepe@uni-bremen.de
